Racket



Feb. 16, 1937.` H. w. HALL 2,070,896

RACKET Filed Aug. 6, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Feb. 16, 1937. H w HALL C 2,070,895

' f RACKET Filed Aug. 6, 1935 2 Sheets-SheetI 2 23 i6 i6, 23 /W nik/9 Y 2,3 L21/ I d KZ;

Patented Feb. 16, 1937 UNITED STATES .PATENT OFFICE 6 Claims.

This invention relates to rackets used to play tennis and t similar games.

In playing with a racket, certain portions of it are subject to great strains and unless these portions are properly reinforced the racket often breaks. VThis reinforcementJ is sometimes provided by gluing or otherwise aflixing laminations of wood at the pointsof stress Where they are needed. One of these laminations is put on the upper portion of the throat, and the glue to hold it oozes out to some extent and hardens at the ridge formed between the throat and said lamination, where it is practically impossible to clear it away without defacing the racket. This collection of glue at such points leaves the racket with a slovenly and unnished appearance, and if it is removed the racket is disgured.

One object of my invention is to so reinforce a racket that any surplus of glue or other material used to unite the laminations on the racket may readily be removed.' Another object is `to make a light weight racket, which the -trade de-` mands, and stillhave a strong racket that will stand up under the severest stress of hard play.

Still another object is to reduce the amount of necessary labor in the work of strengthening and finishing a racket.

At the same time it is my object to improve upon the appearance of the racket and increase the Variety of designs possible in the outside surface or faces of the racket to meet the demand of the trade for new and more attractive models.

In accomplishing the aboveobjects it has also been my purpose to reduce the cost of productionv of the racket and simplify the operations necessary in producing a high grade racket.

The foregoing and other objects which will appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, may be accomplished by a construction, combination and arrangement of parts such as `are disclosed by the drawings. The nature `of theinvention is such asto render it susceptible to variouschanges and modifications, and, therefore, I am not to be limited to the construction disclosed by the drawings; but am en` titled to all suchchanges therefrom as fall within the scope of my claims.

.In the drawings:

. Figure 1 isa front elevational view of the face of anished tennis racket having my central reinforcing lamination.

Figure2 is a front elevational fragmentary View showing part of the shoulders, the throat and part of the handle of an unfinished racket with my rcentral reinforcing laminations thereon in unfinished condition, the dot and dash lines indieating the points to which said central reinforcing lamination will be sanded down to in the finished racket.

Figure 3 is a front elevational fragmentary View showing part of the shoulders, the throat and part of the handle of a finished racket having my central reinforcing lamination.

Figure 4 is a sectional View taken on the line 4 4 of Figure 2, the dotand dash lines indicating the points to which that portion of the racket is to be sanded or beveled down.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary frontelevation view ',similar to Figure 3, but of an unfinished racket,

before the reinforcing laminations are put on, illustrating the crescent-shaped laminations withinthe racket head extending over the -throat and up the-shoulders of the racket.

Figure 6 is a sectional view taken on the line 6 6 of Figure 3.

Figure 7 is anenlarged sectional viewtaken on the line 'I--l of Figure 3, illustrating the central and the shoulder reinforcing laminations at the bow head of the racket.

As illustrated, my racket consists of the usual oval-shaped bow head I2, throat I3 and handle I4. The bow head and handle are bentfrom a singlepiece of `wood or bent from a unit formed by gluing anumber of laminations together. In the-construction illustrated in Figure of the drawings said throat I3 consists of a center strip I5 and side pieces I6, although said throat I3 may consist of a single piece. In the manufacture of rackets of quality it is customary to strengthen them by gluing or otherwise uniting one or more crescent shaped laminations IB which t within the bow head I2, extending across the top of said throat I3 up the shoulder portions I9 of the racket to bind the throat to the bow head. The joints formed between said throatvl3 and said crescent shaped laminations I8 and between the said laminations themselves require reinforcement because during the Stringing of the longitudinal portion of the racket bow head the frame tends to spread laterally and the middle portion of said joints 2U is often broken unless adequately reinforced, especially at the joint between the throat and the lowest lamination I8 because it is wood end gluing at that point. The common way to reinforce these is with laminations running across the upper portion of the throat and part way up the bow head in which the grain runs parallel with said joints 20 which does not always provide the middle portion of said joints with as much reinforcement as is needed.

Cil

In order to reinforce these joints I provide a reinforcing lamination 2| the grain of which runs parallel with the longitudinal axis of the racket and therefore cross bands said joints 20. Said reinforcing lamination 2| is centrally located on the racket and extends in one continuous piece from said crescent shaped inside laminations I8 down over said throat I3 to said handle III where it passes under a cover piece 22 for said handle and extends the length thereof, serving as an underlay and becoming part of said handle. I thereby produce a racket which is light in the throat and have done away with the so-called clubby feeling which comes from covering the throat with an ordinary lamination. Said central lamination 2| is sanded away as indicated at 25 in Figures 2 and 4 of the drawings and the outside edges beveled down as well, so there is only a narrow portion of the central lamination left adjacent the throat portion of the racket as illustrated in Figure 1 of the drawings. This narrow portion is in the central axis of the racket and increases the thickness at this vital point in the racket where so many have broken, and also makes practical the use of lighter weight material in the throat to thereby lighten the racket. Said central lamination 2| flares outwardly as it approaches said cover piece 22.

Extending 'from said central lamination 2| on each side thereof is a lamination 23 extending up each shoulder I9 of the racket to reinforce them, because the strain on a racket in vigorous tennis play is especially great at the shoulders. It will be noted in Figure 7 of the drawings that said central lamination 2| is substantially thinner than said shoulder laminations 23, which saves considerable weight in the throat portion of the racket which should be as light as possible at this point consistent with sturdiness in order to attain a properly balanced racket. At the same time said crescent shaped laminations I8 must have reinforcement which my central lamination 2| provides.

It will be seen that with the lower portion of said central lamination 2| so covered there is practically no possibility of it being loosened, and it is convenient to sand all portions of it, beveling it down and easily cleaning away the extra glue which has oozed out from under the joints as there are no sharp ridges left. In rackets having said center strip I5 in the throat it also serves to reinforce the joints on each side of said center strip I5 and said throat side pieces I6.

The use of said central lamination 2| saves labor in production inasmuch as the clamping operation required to unite said cover pieces 22 to the racket handle also serves to unite said central lamination 2|, Whereas previously a separate clamping operation was required for the center lamination as it did not extend down on the throat to said racket handle.

What I claim is:

1. A racket comprising a bow head, throat and handle, cover laminations on said handle, an inside crescent-shaped lamination united within and to said bow head and extending over said throat and up the shoulders of said racket, a reinforcing lamination on the face of each shoulder of said bow head and a central reinforcing lamination on each face of said racket reinforcing said crescent-shaped lamination and extending from the inner ends of said shoulder reinforcing laminations downwardly on said throat and under said cover means and forming part of said handle, the grain of which said central lamination runs substantially parallel with the longitudinal axis of the racket, said central lamination tapering in width intermediate its top and bottom, part of said intermediate portion being of less width than the width of said throat and handle directly below it, said central lamination being thinner than said shoulder reinforcing laminations.

2. A racket comprising a bow head, throat and handle, cover laminations on said handle, a reinforcing lamination on each shoulder of said bow head and a reinforcing lamination on each face of said racket extending from said shoulder laminations downwardly on said throat to said handle and covering the whole of theV upper portion of said throat and then tapering in width to less than the width of said throat and handle directly below it, and then aring outwardly in width and passing under said cover laminations and forming part of said handle.

3. A racket comprising a bow head, throat and handle, said throat comprising a center strip and two side pieces united to' said center strip, and a reinforcing lamination extending from the lower portion of said bow head downwardly on said throat to said handle, said lamination always covering the joints between said center strip and said two side pieces, and being less than the width of said handle for a portion of its length directly below it.

4. A racket comprising a bow head, throat and handle, a portion of said racket below said bow head curving inwardly at its outer sides, and

a reinforcing lamination extending from the lower portion of said bow head downwardly on said throat to said handle, a portion of said reinforcing lamination curving inwardly at its outer sides to a greater extent than the said inward curving of the adjacent portion of said racket and then curving outwardly.

5. A racket comprising a bow head, throat and handle, said handle embodying cover means, reinforcing laminations on each shoulder of said bow head and spaced from each other, and another reinforcing lamination immediately adjacent and between said reinforcing laminations and extending from the lower portion of said bow head downwardly over said throat to and under said cover means of said handle, an intermediate portion of said latter-mentioned lamination being narrower than an intermediate portion of said handle of which it forms a part, said intermediate portion of said handle including said last-mentioned lamination being rounded at the outside edges and being substantially ellipticalshaped in cross-section.

6. A racket comprising a bow head, throat and handle, said handle embodying cover means, a reinforcing lamination the upper and intermediate visible portions of which are Y-shaped, and the lower and intermediate visible portions of which are Y-shaped and have a substantial but less outward spread toward said handle end than the first-mentioned Y-shape has, said lamination extending from the lower portion of said bow head downwardly over said throat to and under said cover means, an intermediate visible portion of said lamination being narrower than a portion of said throat directly below it, and another intermediate visible portion of said lamination being narrower than a portion of said handle directly below it.

HORACE W. HALL. 

